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Amok Time (episode)
Series: TOS Season: 2 Original Airdate: 1967-09-15 Production Number: PRODUCTION NUMBER Year: 2267 Stardate: 3372.7 Story by: Theodore Sturgeon Directed by: Joseph Pevney Spock is plagued by the Pon farr, the Vulcan mating drive. Summary McCoy notices that Spock is growing restless and has stopped eating. He also is becoming extremely irritable, throwing Nurse Christine Chapel out of his quarters and physically flinging the Vulcan plomeek soup she has specially prepared for him. After this outburst, he demands a leave of absence on his home planet Vulcan. Kirk is baffled by Spock's behavior, but orders the Enterprise to Vulcan. However, a priority message forces him to change course back to Altair VI in order to be on time for the new President's coronation. As soon as he leaves the bridge, Spock orders the course changed back to Vulcan. Kirk orders Spock to sickbay, where Bones examines him and finds that if he is not brought to Vulcan within eight days, Spock will die due to extreme stress produced by chemicals being pumped through his body. When Kirk confronts him, Spock says he cannot tell the cause of his problem because it is a deeply personal affair. Kirk eventually cajoles Spock into revealing that his problem is "Vulcan biology," which Kirk correctly concludes means Vulcan reproduction. Spock explains to them that Vulcans are married as children with the understanding that they will fulfill this commitment when they become adults. Spock has reached this time, the "pon farr," and if he doesn't get to Vulcan immediately to mate with his bride, T'Pring, he will die. Kirk jeopardizes his career by disobeying a direct order to the contrary from Starfleet, and proceeds with all possible speed to Vulcan. As Spock's friends, Kirk and McCoy are invited to witness the marriage ritual -- the "koon-ut-kal-if-fee." The master of ceremonies is T'Pau, the only person ever to turn down a seat in the Federation Council. Trouble starts when T'Pring announces she would rather marry Stonn, a full Vulcan. T'Pring evokes her right to have Spock fight for her. However, she chooses Kirk as her champion. Fearing Spock is too weak to fight Stonn, Kirk agrees. It is only then he is informed that it is to be a fight to the death. The fight ensues and Spock quickly demonstrates physical superiority. McCoy objects to T'Pau that Kirk isn't used to the Vulcan atmosphere and climate. He asks to inject the captain with a tri-ox compound to compensate. T'Pau agrees and Kirk is given the injection. During the fight, Spock apparently kills Kirk and McCoy accompanies the captain's body back to the Enterprise. Spock, his mating urges curbed by the knowledge that Kirk, his friend and captain, is dead by his own hand, relinquishes T'Pring to Stonn. He solemnly returns to the starship. There he finds Kirk alive and well, having been injected not with tri-ox, but with a neuroparalyzer which simulates death. Here, he is overjoyed to find Kirk alive, betraying his emotion with a big smile. Kirk is let off the hook for disobeying orders when Starfleet retroactively grants permission to divert to Vulcan at T'Pau's request. Background Information *This episode marked the first use of the Vulcan salute (an unscripted improvisation by Leonard Nimoy), and the words "Live long and prosper." said by T'Pau. *Bantam Books published a series of novelizations called "foto-novels," which took photographic stills from actual episodes and arranged word balloons and text over them, to create a comic book formatted story. The twelfth and final installment was an adaptation of this episode. * In a curious ongoing blooper, the stain left on the wall outside Spock's quarters when he flings the plomeek soup remained on that wall for the next two seasons. Whenever the crew quarters set is used, whether for Kirk, Spock or another character, watch for the stain through the doorway! (It is especially obvious in Day of the Dove, when Kirk knocks Chekov out in the hallway). * Something very curious about this episode is that the turbo elevator at the end of the corridor is never used. When McCoy emerges from the doorway in the first scene, there is no elevator set inside-- it's just a blank wall. The elevator was moved to a side doorway for this episode. This was probably done in advance of the next episode filmed, The Doomsday Machine, to show the wrecked conditon of Matt Decker's starship. When the landing party beams onto the Constellation, the door is open at the end of this same corridor and no turbo lift is inside. In The Ultimate Computer, a turbo lift is located right outside sickbay and the one at the corridor terminus is not utilized. * A change in this season is thick painted stripes across the corridor floors. It is unknown what these were designed to show-- perhaps important power junctions or to indicate the function of various levels of the ship. * This is the first episode of the second season to offer us a look at the further-expanded sickbay that now includes McCoy's new office. In The Deadly Years we will see the addition of more beds in the infirmary section of the sickbay. * This is the first time Spock's quarters are seen. * For some reason, when Spock pounds his viewscreen into oblivion, there is no glass shattering heard (Kirk's evil self destroyed a viewscreen in The Enemy Within and breaking glass resulted). * During the plak tow sequence, Leonard Nimoy, not realizing he is on film, can be seen lounging casually in the background and then quickly resuming his proper position. * Gerald Fried composed some of the most memorable music in the series for Amok Time. The fight music would be re-used in many episodes throughout the second season. The distinctive Spock theme was played by bassist Barney Kessel. Memorable quotes :"Sailor's luck, Mr. Spock." -- Kirk Nitpicks * Wouldn't using a neural paralyzer pre-suppose that McCoy knew that Kirk would be terminally oxygen-deprived (i.e., strangled)? With his complete unfamiliarity with Vulcan customs, how could McCoy have known that the ahn-woon combat was coming? Links and References Guest Stars * Majel Barrett as Christine Chapel * Eddie Paskey as Leslie * William Blackburn as Hadley * Byron Morrow as Komack * Celia Lovsky as T'Pau * Arlene Martel as T'Pring * Lawrence Montaigne as Stonn * Walter Edmiston as Vulcan Space Central Voice * Russ Peek as Vulcan Executioner * Joe Paz as Vulcan Litterbearer * Charles Palmer as Vulcan Litterbearer * Mark Russell as Vulcan Litterbearer * Gary Wright as Vulcan Litterbearer * Mauri Russell as Vulcan Bell and Banner Carrier * Frank da Vinci as Vulcan Bell and Banner Carrier * Dave Perna as Spock (Stunt Double) * Paul Baxley as Kirk (Stunt Double) * Phil Adams as Kirk (Stunt Double) References Ahn-woon; Aldebaran shellmouth; Altair VI; Eel-birds; Finagle's laws; Kah-if-farr; Kal-if-fee; Klee-fah; Koon-ut-kal-if-fee; Kroykah; Lirpa; Plak tow; plomeek soup; pon farr; quarterly physical; Regulus V; tri-ox compound; Vulcan; Vulcans; Vulcan lute. Category:TOS episodes de:Weltraumfieber nl:Amok Time